Tnpsc Current Affairs Mar. 17, 2017

Topic : Political Science – General Administration, Profile of States, National

Tamil Nadu to replace State’s Planning Commission

Tamil Nadu Government has decided to replace the State Planning Commission with a Development Policy Council in consonance with the Centre’s approach in doing away with distinction between plan and non-plan allocations.

This was announced by the States Finance Minister D. Jayakumar during his budget presentation in the state assembly.

The state government welcomed the Centre’s move, it would simplify the budgetary process and keep the focus firmly on the functional classification of expenditure.

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Topic : Political Science – Public Awareness & General Administration

National Health Policy 2017

The National Health Policy, 2017 was approved by the Union Cabinet, two years after a draft copy of the bill was circulated among stakeholders.

After considering suggestions from the public, state governments and others, the new policy will replace the previous one, which was framed 15 years ago in 2002.

Key highlights:

It intends on gradually increasing public health expenditure to 2.5% of the GDP.

It focusses on primary health care: The policy advocates allocating two-thirds (or more) of resources to primary care. It proposes two beds per 1,000 of the population to enable access within the golden hour (the first 60 minutes after a traumatic injury).

Key targets:

Increase Life Expectancy at birth from 67.5 to 70 by 2025. Reduce infant mortality rate to 28 by 2019.

Reduce Under Five Mortality to 23 by 2025.To reduce premature mortality from cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes or chronic respiratory diseases by 25% by 2025.

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Topic : History – Latest Diary of Events

India hosts world’s oldest Algae fossil

Scientists in India have uncovered a pair of 1.6 billion-year-old fossils that appear to contain red algae, which may be the oldest plant-like life discovered on Earth.

Until now, the oldest known red algae was 1.2 billion years old.

The fossils were discovered in sedimentary rocks at Chitrakoot in central India.

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Topic : History – New Appointments, Who is Who?

Member of SAI – Jwala Gupta

India’s Badmint player Jwala Gupta has been appointed as the member of the governing body of Sports Authority of India (SAI).

About Jwala Gupta:

The 14-time national champion and two-time Olympian Jwala kupta won the bronze medal at the 2011 World Championships.

She is also a 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games champion and a silver medallist at the 2014 Glasgow Games in women’s doubles.

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Topic : History – Awards and Honours

Teen Scientists Won the Regeneron Science Talent Search Awards in New Jersey

Indian Origin School students won the Regeneron Science Talent Awards in New Jersey. These awards nick named as “Junior Nobel Prize”, which is the oldest U.S science competition for students.

Indrani:

An Indian-American 17 yrs oldIndrani Das of New Jersey, has won the 2017 Regeneron Science Talent top award of 250,000 (Rs.1.63 crore) dollars.

Indrani, student at the Academy for Medical Science Technology in Hackensack, won the prestigious high school science and mathematics competition for her new research on treating brain injury and disease.

Arjun:

Another Indian-American Arjun Ramani won the third prize worth of $1,50,000.

Arjun won the award for his project on networks using mathematical field of graph theory and computer porgramming.

Archana verma:

Indian-American Archana verma took the fifth place award of $90,000 for research that could lead to the development of windows that could produce solar power.

Prathik Naidu:

Indian-American Prathik Naidu won the seventh place worth of $70,000 for a software to study human genomes and cancer.

Vrinda Madan:

Indian-American Vrinda Madan won the ninth place award of $50,000 for her study of medications for malaria.